Czeslaw Bielecki: Architecture, Freedom, Memory

Noted Polish architect and activist Czeslaw Bielecki discusses his work and the Polish transition from communism to democracy on Wednesday, March 4, at 6:30 p.m. at the Central Library, 14 W. 10th St.

Bielecki is the winner of several design competitions, including one while still a student for a memorial monument to the Polish Zywiciel Home Army Unit. Among the famous structures Bielecki will discuss are the Communism Memorial Museum in Warsaw and the Radegast Monument in Lodz.

Bielecki was also the largest underground book publisher in Poland during the Communist era. He later became a member of the Parliament. He will share personal stories about Poland under Communist rule and his own rise to political prominence.

Born in Warsaw in 1948, Bielecki graduated from the Warsaw University of Technology in 1973 and received his Ph.D. from Krakow University of Technology in 1997. He also speaks English, French, and Russian. He holds licenses for architecture and urban planning. He has practiced in France, Israel, and Germany, and has been a visiting lecturer on architecture and urban planning in Warsaw, Berlin, London, Montreal, Washington, Philadelphia, Moscow, Sydney, Jerusalem, and Melbourne, among other locations.

The event is co-sponsored by the American Institute of Architects Kansas City.

A 6 p.m. reception precedes the event. Admission is free. Click here or call 816.701.3407 to RSVP. Free parking is available in the Library District Parking Garage located at 10th and Baltimore.